A review by backonthealex
The Magic in Changing Your Stars by Leah Henderson

3.0

I've always been a fan of Leah Henderson, but this book just didn't work for me. After messing up an audition to play the Scarecrow in The Wiz, his school’s annual play, Ailey, 11, is ready to give up. His grandfather, in the hospital, tells him how he had also give up his dream and lived to regret. He gives Ailey custody of a pair of tap shoes that belonged to Bojangles Robinson, which sends him back to 1939 Harlem, where he tries to change his grandfather’s fate, but learns a lesson about not giving up. This felt like a dated first draft that needing some editing. Ailey’s time is 2010 and he listens to a Nano - will anyone know what those are nowadays? The story is interesting, the execution not so much. A little more editing and this would be a 4 star book.